The Princess and the Heartless
by TTY7
Summary: (KH3 scenario) "That stupid lazy bum doesn't know what he's asking of me, but he should by now. He should know that all I really want is to be by his side, no matter what danger awaits us. After everything we've been through together, all I want is for Sora and I to share our destinies, for our hearts to beat as one, and for everything to be like it was before all of this started."


A/N: Hello everyone! So, I am officially obsessed with Kingdom Hearts now. Who else just got 2.5 Remix? (Right now mine is still under the Christmas tree.) Anyway, this morning I woke up and had this little one-shot idea in my head. It's basically a scenario for KH3 involving Sora's anti-form. He became this anti-form multiple times in KH2 when you activated certain drive forms. There's a specific system for it, but I'm not here to get into detail about all that. I just found it weird that in KH2, it's never addressed that Sora can become this heartless version of himself where he basically breakdances and uses his bare hands to tear through everything in his way while running on all fours. So I'm hoping that it will be addressed in KH3 and here's how I'd like to see it implemented.

Plot synopsis: Kairi, now being a keyblade wielder, wants to tag along with Sora and help him any way she can. Sora refuses and leaves her behind yet again. This time Kairi follows. The results are the one-shot below. This story is all in Kairi's point of view.

Warnings: There is a bit of fluff ahead. More importantly though, I am new to writing for Kingdom Hearts so if you choose to review go easy on me. Constructive criticism is welcome. Also, I am lost without spell check and said spell check is missing from the document editing right now, so if you catch spelling errors, please tell me. Oh, and one more thing. I just got into Kingdom Hearts this past summer, and while I know most of the spoilers for Kingdom Hearts and what not, I can't say I'm totally caught up with the story. If there's anything continuity wise that's a little messed up, please let me know.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.

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><p><em>The Princess and the Heartless<em>

How many more times is he going to do this to me?

Sora and I have been the best of friends since we were children, but on this one issue, we have never seen eye to eye.

"Kairi, I know you want to help and I can see how much you've improved, but..." Sora trailed off, his hypnotizing blue eyes shifting away from me. I already knew what he wanted to say, but he was holding back to spare my feelings. He was always holding something back or flinging himself into danger to protect me in some way and every time he did so he would ask me to wait for him and Riku to return.

But I don't have to wait anymore. I'm a keyblade weilder too and thanks to a lot of training, I can hold my own against heartless. I can help Sora protect everyone.

Regardless of this obvious detail, Sora still sees me as someone who constantly needs protection. He see's someone fragile when he looks at me. I'm sick of it. I'm tired of him seeing me that way. He needs to know that I don't need him to worry about me all the time. I can take of myself.

More than that...I need him to realize that I don't want to be seperated from him again. If being with him means being thrown into battle after battle against heartless, nobodies, and Xehanort, then I'll gladly take that on alongside him.

He isn't going to let me do that though, even if I continue to fight with him over it. He isn't going to budge. He never does when it comes to me fighting.

I had to try anyway. "Sora, if it's my safety you're worried about then don't. I can protect myself. Please, I want to help you."

Sora kept his gaze on the ground. "Believe me, you'll be more help to me if you stay here with Leon and the others for now. It's likely that one of the Xehanort clones might show up while I'm fighting. I know you can hold your own against most heartless, but facing Xemnas, Xigbar, or any of those other guys is ten times more dangerous."

"I'm one of the guardians of light Sora," I reminded him. "I'll have to fight them anyway."

"I know...and I wish with all my heart that you didn't have to."

"Sora..."

He shook his head before turning around to face me. With a soft smile he said, "Donald and Goofy will be with me, so it's not like I'm going out there alone." After taking a couple of steps forward, he placed both his hands on my shoulders. "I need you to wait for me..."

"Just like always," I finished, turning my gaze away. "But Sora, I...

I would have continued, but then Goofy called. Sora let out a sigh as his hands fell from my shoulders. I didn't look back up at him, even as he turned away from me again.

"I'm sorry, Kairi."

Without another word he ran off toward the voices of his two comrades. As much as I like Donald and Goofy, I can't say that either of them have the best timing. Then again, I already had a feeling that the conversation would end with me standing on the sidelines again, waiting for Sora to return so I could chew him out once he got back.

Once more I've been left behind. Once more I'm left wondering if he'll ever come back to me. The last time we truly said goodbye to each other, I didn't see him again for more than a year.

What if he does run into Xehanort's clones out there? What if they catch him off guard?

What if Sora never comes back?

That stupid lazy bum doesn't know what he's asking of me, but he should by now. He should know that all I really want is to be by his side, no matter what danger awaits us. I want to be standing next to him whether we succeed in the coming war or fail. After everything we've been through together, all I want is for Sora and I to share our destinies, for our hearts to beat as one, and for everything to be like it was before all of this got started. Just me, him, and Riku.

But if Sora never comes back...I'll never be the same no matter how much time passes. A piece of me will disappear along with him.

I'd rather go down with him than be left behind one more time.

Holding my hand out in front of me, I summon my keyblade. "I'm sorry Sora," I murmured, lowering the blade so it was extended in front of me, "but I can't wait anymore. I'm going to fight with you whether you want me to or not."

He'll be angry with me. He may even call me selfish for wanting to fight with him when I know he has a bad habit of worrying over me to the point of detriment. I can't help it though. He and I are alike in that we can't stand to wait on the sidelines while others continue to fight and suffer for us.

I don't know half of what Sora's been through, but I know there's a lot of pain in his heart. I want to fix it and the only way I know how to is to be by his side supporting him.

"_Even if I have to follow you in secret, I'm going to be there when you need me."_

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><p>Later<p>

"Get back!"

Swinging my arm forward, I knocked away two yellow operas hoverring over me. A couple of shadows were nearby followed by three large bodies. Fighting against all of them at once is definitely more challenging than I expected, but I'm managing. Riku's training and the few tips I managed to force Sora into giving me were definitely helpful tricks. I should be through with these guys in no time at all.

With the yellow operas gone, I held up my keyblade in the air. My combat skills weren't the best, but Master Yen Sid had once complimented me on my magic abilities. I hope it helps me now.

"Lighting!"

A couple strikes of lighting rained down from the sky, striking the shadows and two of the three large bodies. I followed up my lighting attack with some fire blasts. The shadows disappeared pretty quickly, but the three large bodies were still proving to be a challenge. From what I can tell though, one strike from my keyblade should do the trick for each of them.

"Here goes," I muttered, jumping away from their fireball attacks as I ran to strike one of them from behind. One strike against the back of the big heartless caused him to disappear. I handled the other two in the same way, though I did get hit by one of them just before I destroyed it. I'll probably be a little sore in the morning from it, but it's nothing a little potion can't solve.

With the courtyard by the rebuilt castle of Radiant Garden empty of heartless, I let myself have a quiet moment of triumph. "_See Sora, I can hold my own just fine..."_

"Kairi!"

Blinking in confusion I shifted my gaze to the right of me and found Donald jumping up and down with an odd expression on his face. I couldn't tell if he was happy to see me or if he was worried about something. Probably a little of both.

"Thank goodness!" he shouted, the intensity of his squeal hurting my ears just a bit. "Sora needs help!"

My mind almost blanked at his words. "What? Is he in trouble?"

Donald nodded. "He got hurt really badly and I can't heal him."

"Why not?" I questioned, worry filling my mind. "How hurt is he? I have potions and..."

"It's more complicated then that," Donald cut in, his temper getting the better of him for a few seconds. "Just follow me. Goofy can explain it."

"Okay," I replied, trusting in Donald's judgment . I followed behind him around the castle until we reached the back courtyard. Aerith had told me that new gardens had just been planted here. All kinds of flowers and decorative topiary bushes surrounded us, but when we reached the gardens, my eyes immediately locked on Sora. He was kneeling on the ground with his head hanging low and black shadows were oozing all around him, covering him in a haze of black. Goofy stood nearby, a look of clear concern on his face. Seeing Goofy look like that made me nervous. He's the only person I've known to be more cheerful than Sora in almost every situation, so to see him like this now...

Donald waddled toward his comrade. "Goofy, I brought Kairi. I think she can help Sora."

"Gawrsh, I hope so," Goofy answered, his gaze still on Sora. "I hate not being able to do anything to help him."

"I know, but if anyone can get him back to normal, it's Kairi."

Marching forward I asked the two of them what had happened and they filled me in on a situation none of us had been aware about. Apparently, when Sora summons two keyblades at once, he sometimes ends up transforming into an anti-version of himself.

"When did this start happening?" I asked, glaring at the two of them. "Why didn't you two tell anyone about it?"

Goofy and Donald both hung their heads but it was Goofy who answered. "Well, Sora asked us not to. And besides that, before he always turned back into his usual self, but now..."

"But now he isn't transforming back," Donald finished. "I was worried that we wouldn't be able to get help in time, but then I found you."

I nodded. "I followed after you guys after Sora told me to stay back. Normally I would have waited, but I had a bad feeling and I just...I just had to follow my heart this time."

"Well, it's a good thing you did," Goofy replied. "Ya know, I think you're really the only person who can help Sora anyhow."

"Really?" I asked. "Why do you say that?"

"Well, back when this place was still Hollow Bastian, you saved Sora."

"I did?"

Donald's eyes widened. "Oh, you mean when Sora turned into a heartless?"

"Hyuck, that's right," Goofy confirmed. "Donald and I didn't see that it was Sora, but you did and when the heartless attacked, his heart came back from the darkness. His anti-whatchamacallit is kinda like him turning back into a heartless. He can still recognize us, but his heart is in the darkness. I think he's too weak to snap out of it. The three of us took on at least...well how many do you think it was Donald?"

"Hmmm," Donald tilted his head to the side as he thought it over. "About five thousand."

My jaw nearly dropped to the ground. "That many! In a small area like this? No wonder Sora got hurt so badly."

"We were pretty bad off too," Donald defended, "but we could heal ourselves. Sora can't as long as he's in that anti-form."

Lifting my gaze from Donald and Goofy, I stared at Sora. The shadows around him were getting thicker. Brushing past the two, I knelt to Sora's level and placed my hands on both his shoulders. "Sora?"

Sora looked up, but when he did an involuntary gasp slipped through my lips. His eyes...they were vacant and yellow...just like the shadow heartless he had become so long ago.

Upon hearing my screech, he started to back away from me in an animalistic way, but I stopped him by taking hold of his arms again. He struggled briefly, with a few odd sounds coming from his mouth, but after a few seconds he stopped moving.

"It's okay," I breathed, smiling at him. "I'm not scared. Your new look just startled me a little." Gently I pressed my hand against his cheek which was black from the shadow aura hovering over him. "I remember one other time when you looked similar."

Narrowing my gaze on his, I thought back to that horrible moment when I thought Sora was gone forever. I remember Donald screaming and the sight of Sora falling backward as his body began to disappear. I remember running to catch him just to embrace air and small twinkles of light as he faded away.

And then, I remembered the happiness I felt when I realized that the small shadow heartless following us out of the dark castle was my Sora. It didn't matter that he had transformed into a tiny creature of darkness. All that mattered to me at the time was the realization that he was still alive and that he still longed to see me, even in a state where he couldn't even figure out who he was.

I remember holding his shadow form close to me as other shadow heartless surrounded us on all sides. I had whispered to him then that I would protect him just like he had always protected me.

That's when the light returned and I felt his arms around me. I remember fighting back tears when the solid sound of his heart beating reached my ears.

_Thank you, Kairi..._

A tear rolled down my cheek as I began to lean in towards his face. My eyes slipped closed.

At first, I wasn't sure if my lips had reached his. I knew that I was kissing him, yet it felt like nothing was in front of me. However, as the seconds passed, I felt the warmth of Sora's light enfold me. The shadows dissipated and after a few more seconds, I could feel his lips beneath mine. Donald and Goofy were cheering behind me too, but their voices sounded distant in my mind.

He sucked in a small breath, probably out of surprise and maybe even a little embarassment over the fact that Donald and Goofy were witnessing his first kiss. I almost pulled back because of this, but then his arms were wrapped around me, pulling me closer. He kissed me back.

After a few more seconds I pulled away to see his face. No longer did the shadows cover him. He was smiling with a slight flush on his cheeks. His spiky hair was brown instead of black.

My eyes locked on the breathtaking blue color of his eyes and the happiness reflected within them. "_Thanks goodness._"

Without thinking I leaned my head against his shoulder and hugged him as tightly as I could. "Sora! You're back!"

"Ouch...Kairi..." he gasped weakly. "That hurts."

"Oh," I answered, releasing my grip on him. "I'm sorry I just...I just..." I trailed off as our gazes met. I could feel tears gathering in the corners of my eyes all over again, but I fought them off and instead hugged Sora more gently. "I'm just happy you're alright."

"Thanks to you," he answered, "though I still kinda need..." his words tappered off as a green light from above surrounded us. "Thanks Donald." With a small laugh he returned my embrace. "And thank you Kairi...I'm sorry about what I said before. It's just that...you're..." he was struggling to talk right now. I was still hugging him, but I'm pretty sure he mouthed something to Donald and Goofy.

I heard Goofy laugh and then whisper to Donald about leaving us alone. Donald agreed reluctantly. That nosy little duckling.

Once they were out of sight, Sora continued. "You're the one person I can't bear losing. I already felt that pain once and now that we're together again I just...I don't want anything to take you away. With Xehanort and company running around, I'm just scared that something might happen to you."

I let out a small sigh. "Sora, that's exactly how I feel too." Tightening my grip just a bit, I continued, saying, "That's why I'm always begging to come with you. I don't want you to leave me alone again. That year without you...I was so sad. All I wanted was to see you again."

"Even though you forgot about me?"

"That's the thing," I replied, closing my eyes as I listened to his heart beat. "I didn't forget about you. I forgot details about you for a bit, but I never ever truly forgot you. How could I? I love you."

Sora was silent for a long moment and then he asked, "Even though I'm a lazy bum?"

I shook my head a bit. "No. Especially because you're a lazy bum...my lazy bum."

His fingers gently wove into my hair. "And you're my princess. I love you too Kairi."

For another few minutes we sat there, simply embracing each other. In a way, I had always known how I felt about Sora and had a feeling that he felt the same. Still, to finally hear him say it is a dream come true. I just hope that at the end of this war we'll have to fight, that Sora and I will have a chance to be happy together back home on the islands we once took for granted. I'd give anything to go back home right now, but the two of us have to see this through to the end. For right now though, I'm content with this moment of bliss.

"Kairi."

"Hmm?"

"Could you help me stand?" Sora asked, clearly embarassed. "Donald healed me up but I'm still really sore. I don't think I can walk on my own."

Pulling away I nodded. "Sure, but on one condition."

Sora tilted his head in confusion. "Huh?" What condition is that?"

"From now on, you have to let come along," I told him, smirking at him. "After all, if you transform into that heartless form again and can't change back, who else is going to pull you out of it but me?"

Shrugging in defeat he answered, "I guess no one."

"Exactly, so do we have a deal?"

"If I say no, are you going to just leave me here to fend for myself? Leave me at the mercy of any heartless that show up?"

Glancing about at the gardens surrounding us, I pretended to think about it. "Yep, I believe that's what I'm going to do."

Sora shook his head. "And she says she loves me." Letting out a laugh he reached out to touch my face. "Fine, but I have a condition too."

"Sora, you aren't exactly in the position to..." he cut me off with his lips. It was a foul move on his part, but one I enjoyed too much to care. I'm not sure if I'll ever get used to the feeling of Sora's lips against mine, but I'm willing to continue kissing him until I do...even if it takes the rest of my life.

At the end of this journey, if my title as a Princess of Heart plays any part, I'm certain Sora and I will live happily ever after in a place where we'll never have to be apart.

Until that day comes, well, let's just say that this is a good way to start.

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><p>AN: And that's pretty much it. Just a simple little one-shot that's pretty much just fluff all the way. What can I say, I'm a sap for the mushy stuff. Anyway, if you guys enjoyed it, feel free to leave a review. Constructive criticism is welcome too. Thanks for reading and Merry Christmas too!


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